Democrats blasted Republicans, and deftly sidestepped the reality of Ben Nelson’s vote, for blocking consideration of a Wall Street reform bill, and they planned to bring up a revote as early as tomorrow.

All of the top leaders of the party, including Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi and President Obama, highlighted the obstructionism of every Republican voting against cloture on the motion to proceed, save Kit Bond and Bob Bennett, who didn’t vote. The President in particular turned the tables on Republicans, accusing them of backroom dealing instead of open debate:

“I am deeply disappointed that Senate Republicans voted in a block against allowing a public debate on Wall Street reform to begin. Some of these Senators may believe that this obstruction is a good political strategy, and others may see delay as an opportunity to take this debate behind closed doors, where financial industry lobbyists can water down reform or kill it altogether. But the American people can’t afford that. A lack of consumer protections and a lack of accountability on Wall Street nearly brought our economy to its knees, and helped cause the pain that has left millions of Americans without jobs and without homes. The reform that both parties have been working on for a year would prevent a crisis like this from happening again, and I urge the Senate to get back to work and put the interests of the country ahead of party.”

Jeff Merkley said something similar earlier today. “Instead of voting to allow the bill to be debated in public view, they want more backroom negotiations and delay as they try to kill Wall Street reform. It is nothing short of remarkable that after everything our country has been through in the last two years, Senators continue to defend the anything-goes ideology that puts the foxes in charge of the henhouse,” he said in a statement after the vote.

Democrats obviously feel they can gain traction by putting the opposition on the side of special interests and the big banks. They plan to bring a motion to reconsider to the floor as early as tomorrow. We could see three or four votes on the same motion this week. They further planned actions with dozens of consumer advocates throughout the week. US PIRG (Public Interest Research Group) will appear with Jack Reed and Bob Menendez tomorrow.

However, to actually get over this hurdle and not just engage in political posturing, Democrats probably have to bring Ben Nelson in from off the reservation. And his vote appears to be tied to a provision benefiting the richest man in Nebraska, Warren Buffett.

Senate Democrats agreed Monday to kill a provision from their derivatives bill pushed by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc., a change one analyst predicted could force the Nebraska company to set aside up to $8 billion.

The Senate Agriculture Committee inserted language into its derivatives bill last week at the request of Sen. Ben Nelson (D., Neb.) that would have exempted any existing derivatives contracts from new collateral requirements—the money set aside to cover potential losses.

Berkshire has $63 billion in derivatives contracts, and Mr. Buffett has boasted he holds very little collateral against these products [...]

The inclusion of the provision could have been a problem for Democrats, who saw their health-care overhaul stagger under the weight of similar home-state favors, including one for Mr. Nelson.

More from Planet Money. As Mcjoan notes, Nelson is probably trying to hide behind Republicans on this. But he also probably really wants to help out his biggest benefactor, and if he didn’t get reprimanded for mucking up health care reform, he probably feels that he’ll face no great abuse for mucking up the partisan strategy on FinReg.

So other than banging on Republicans, I don’t see much of an endgame here, although talks continue and presumably the GOP won’t hold out on this particular issue forever.

They’re trying to get political brownie points while keeping their sponsors happy. I have no idea whether the Republicans are being patsies or are somehow willingly complicit. What I do know is that I am sick to death of this obscene kabuki. The American people need leadership and action and we get theater of the absurd.

it’s the economy stupid- and every week Dems fail– and not by just a little — to have a laser like focus on the issue — and that saying “95% got a tax cut” when sales, property, and user taxes in nearly every town are going up — is a recipe for losing elections.

Focusing on young voters will get that much harder after college graduations in may/june — and there are very few jobs for them…

and it gets to the same fact- now apparent that the Medicare actuary’s report that HC costs for me and you are GOING UP under the HCR law — was given to HHS and White House before the final vote, but it was locked down and hidden…

President Obama is turning out to be the ultimate reverse Robin Hood — stealing from the poor to give to the rich…

and did I mention he sold women’s right to choose for HCR? Arizona has already passed the law banning abortion coverage through the exchange — add to that millions more on Medicaid… and, poof, 35 years of pro-choice work down the tubes…

but, instead Harry Reid should make theater about forcing the Republicans (with bipartisan support from Ben Nelson) to vote no again and again on a bill, the details of which will, no doubt, only serve to cement more power in GS and other mega-banking companies.

Repeat, if fails repeat. Keep on repeating this til election day if necessary. The longer the Republicans maintain the filibuster on “Wall Street Reform” the more they will be revealed has the asshats they really are.

Obama is bashed here because he deserves it. Do you think healthcare reform was a resounding success? Do you believe in the “drill, baby, drill” mantra? Do you think torture is ok? Do you think the US is accomplishing anything in Iraq and Afghanistan? Do you think their is a need for guns in national parks? Is Tim Geithner a tax-dodger? Is Rahm Emanual a foul mouthed, thuggish little pissant? Do you agree with Larry Summers free market, unregulated capitalism bullshit? I could go on and on.
And would you like to buy my two Obama tee shirts? I won’t be needing them.

Yes Jan, Badwater believes (and owns) all that is Obama and Democratic.

Never in my wildest dreams before the last year and a half would I ever have suspected that “our” side had supporters no matter what just like the dittohead Republicans. But not only do we have them, we have them in similar numbers and with similar illogical devotion. Unbelieveable.

I’d bet dollars to donut holes that all folks just like that one screamed loudly and often at Bush for his transgressions (which well they SHOULD) but Barry and the D’s can do anything but we’re supposed to support them because…..

they’re better than the Republcans.

That’s it. Only reason.

Never mind the fact that BOTH parties have now moved so far right as to be nearly openly fascist. The mere fact that one of the two remains inches (or milimeters) left of the other means that one is to be supported at all costs.

Yeah, while we’re getting a national swirly, we should worry about using only the most the politically correct language.

Actually, I think that most people (regardless of our ideological views) are capable of using precise, respectful language to convey exactly what we mean while at the same time dealing with the country’s many problems. One needn’t be mutually exclusive of the other.

Right, ‘cuz ignoring how we create the problems we decry has been working so well for so long. (/s to an internment camp by any other name still reeks to high heaven)

Are you aware that reservations exist today, they aren’t just metaphors for rogues to run away from? And that they’re among the poorest counties in the country? So who would want to be brought back to that?

Get him back on the same page, get him with the program–plenty of sports analogies, why dredge up that outdated metaphor?

This is how we advance the movement of our shared narrative, away from engendering hellscapes (featuring real reservations, for example, or any of a number of hells created, in part, by careless word-smithery) toward forming our more perfect Union. Derogatory, outdated, implicitly racist pejoratives are like last week’s garbage.

Words matter. Please choose wisely. Or, is our goal so important, it’s still ok to fuck the Indians on the way? Centrists have their “punch the hippy” routine, is this an unwitting “punch the Indian” trope?

I’m not at all saying that was D-Day’s intention. Calling someone a cotton-picker, pejoratively, refers to the time when only slaves or share-croppers picked cotton; it was a back-breaking, thankless, nasty chore. So that phrase, except in the South, of course, has fallen out of usage. Then there’s the n-bomb. And so on.

Respecting our neighbors and fellow citizens isn’t about political correctness (implying that we do it cynically), it’s about forming our more perfect Union.

(BTW, I have at least one documented native ancestor, specific tribe unknown ‘cuz it wasn’t noted on the marriage license, most likely of the northeastern Iroquois confederation of tribes. When we’re talking about reservations, my friend, that’s my family. Moreover, by the principle of universal common descent, every living thing on earth is related to every other living thing. So respecting each other out of compassion is only natural. Wouldn’t you agree?)

Is there anyone you won’t apologize for? Give me a break. Reservations are not in history, they are in existence today. We have them all over our state. Some are open to whites, some are closed to whites.

What have you done today to help a disadvantaged (besides lecturing every moment here at FDL about the speech of others)

(I heard after the McCain-Lieberman Citizen Belligerent Act passes, the ‘O’ will be looking for a few good men and women to identify Citizen Belligerent’s by their speech. Sounds like a perfect fit for you?)

and note to KnowBudda – can’t speak for what happens in other States, but where I live, the Reservations are in fairly good shape financially (better than I), the Casinos have done wonders.

Since the days of Reagan, I’ve voted for democrats simply because I thought they were better than the GOP. I voted for Clinton the second time only because of the Supreme Court. Obama has brought out the militancy in me at a pretty scary level because I believed him, and he lied to me and made a fool of me. I am so bitterly disappointed because I thought he was the one I’d been waiting for since the 60′s. And he turned out to be another smooth talking, lying politician. Last week I received a solicitation from Chuck Schumer for a donation. Included in his request, was a list of 5 reasons why I may be frustrated with Washington. I made up my own list and wrote “corporate fascist democrats” 5 times. I ended with a heart-felt “go to hell, Chuck”. Two years ago I would never have done that. The democratic party no longer represents me. No one does.

I don’t believe I have harmed anyone with my cautions, yet you seem to be angry with me, as others have been before you. I don’t understand the anger or the upset. Where does it come from? What’s the fear?

No one may represent us Jan, but there’s a bunch of us in the same group.

I’ve been around pols since the early 60′s and thought I had a fairly good feel when meeting them how straight they were. When I met our Junior Senator from Minnesota (the former SNL writer and star) I didn’t perceive any phoniness but saw a fellow that was engaging, actually not the partisan warrior that he came across as on the radio but cared about all his constituents, not just the D’s (I was asked to leave the party for being non-supportive of Jimmy and Fritz’s second term campaign). But now, I don’t know what happened. Either my perceptions are to be no longer trusted, or there’s something else at play.

I share those feelings and am also worried about Franken. Given BO’s betrayal it is tempting to be very suspicious of AF. I didn’t know BO at all, but I think I do know Franken. He is either sincere and honest, or he is the smoothest sociopath ever to come out of Saint Louis Park, MN. If he turns bad, I will truly feel like giving up.